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Academic Policy Details

Academic Integrity/Honesty

William Woods University, founded on the principle of honesty, has long endeavored to maintain an atmosphere of academic integrity. In all academic work, it is important that the ideas and contributions of others be appropriately acknowledged, and that work that is presented as original is, in fact, original. Insuring the honesty and fairness of the intellectual environment at William Woods University is a responsibility that is shared by the entire campus community.

Students are expected to adhere to the highest standards of honesty in their behavior. The following are examples of dishonest behavior and violations of the principle of academic integrity. These are examples and do not exhaust all conduct that could constitute violations of this academic integrity policy. Students are expected to refrain from:

Engaging in any academic work that is the product of joint effort, either inside or outside the classroom, not authorized by the instructor.

Plagiarism of any sort. You commit plagiarism by taking someone else’s ideas, works, or other types of work product and presenting them as your own. You can avoid plagiarism by using proper methods of documentation and acknowledgement.

Cheating on an examination. You must not receive or provide any unauthorized assistance during an examination. During an examination you may use only materials authorized by the instructor.

Fabricate or falsify data or records. It is dishonest to fabricate or falsify data in laboratory experiments, research papers, reports, or other circumstances; fabricate source material in a bibliography or “work cited” list; or provide false information on a resume or other document in connection with academic efforts.

Attempting to gain an unfair advantage concerning academic work, including but not limited to: a. Unauthorized removal or defacing of material from a University room or service area. b. Unauthorized use of equipment and or technology, i.e., advanced calculators, computers, etc.

Engaging in other forms of deceit of dishonesty. For example, do not submit the same work for more than one course without explicitly obtaining permission from all instructors. Do not request any academic benefit, including an extension of time, a better grade, or a recommendation, from an instructor when the request is based on false information or deception. Do not engage in any other form of academic misconduct not covered here. If you are ever in doubt, ask the instructor for guidance.

Faculty Responsibility

Faculty are strongly encouraged to report incidents of student academic misconduct so that the incident may be handled in a consistent, fair manner, and so that substantiated charges of misconduct may be noted in the student’s record.

Complaint Procedures

Any member of the University community may file a complaint alleging a violation of the Academic Integrity Policy.

The complaint shall be in writing and provide sufficient information for a review by the Division Chair.

The complaint shall be directed to the Division Chair within thirty days of the discovery of the alleged violation of the Academic Integrity Policy.

The Division Chair shall review the allegation and, if it appears credible and further action is warranted, shall provide a copy of the allegation to the accused student and shall promptly schedule a meeting with the student.

The Division Chair (or his/her designee) shall promptly investigate the allegations. If the allegations are valid, the Division Chair shall impose a sanction.

The sanction for violation of this policy shall be determined by the severity of the violation of this Academic Integrity Policy. Sanctions can range from a formal written reprimand, to failure of the course, and in serious cases, suspension or expulsion from the University.

If an allegation is determined to be valid, a copy of that determination shall be retained with the student’s official academic records. If a suspension or expulsion occurs, that shall be recorded on the student’s transcript.